In the construction materials trade, customer experience is becoming the main driver of competitiveness.

According to an exclusive study conducted by Orisha Construction with 125 decision-makers in the building materials trade, 1 in 2 players in the building materials trade now consider customer experience as their priority strategic lever, ahead of logistics or digitalization.

Digitalization, logistics and customer relations: the trade-offs for businesses

Trade operates in a demanding environment where cost control and responsiveness are becoming crucial. The Orisha 2025 Barometer reveals that 49% of trading companies are strengthening their efforts on customer experience, at the same level as investments in logistics or digital tools.

Local SMEs face a more fragile morale

The average level of confidence of managers in their company's ability to grow stands at 7,3/10, a slight decrease compared to 2024 (7,6/10).

This average masks significant disparities depending on the size of the structures:

• SMEs (< 250 employees): confidence level at 7,0/10, impacted by market uncertainty and local competition.
• Large companies (> 250 employees): confidence at 7,7/10, supported by financial strength and investment capacity.

Customer experience: between human advice and omnichannel strategy

To stand out, businesses adapt their customer strategy according to their size:

• 49% of businesses invest in customer relations.
• 44% prioritize product availability to improve service.

Large companies are increasingly adopting omnichannel strategies (51%), streamlining the purchasing process and boosting customer satisfaction. SMEs, on the other hand, are focusing more on competitive pricing (48%) and product availability (43%).

Cost management: a crucial issue for small businesses

For SMEs in the trading sector, optimizing margins remains a priority:

• 53% of companies with fewer than 250 employees cite cost management as their main challenge.
• Only 22% of large organizations feel the same pressure.

To respond, they favour quick levers: marketing and communication (46%) and exploration of new markets (38%).

Logistics and digitalization: strategic levers

Digital transformation is becoming an essential focus:

• 94% of traders use or plan to use inventory and delivery management software.
• Emerging technologies, such as artificial intelligence, are of interest to the sector, but with significant disparities depending on the size of the company.

Technological gap between SMEs and large corporations:

Sustainable development: still a limited priority for SMEs

Sustainable development remains a priority for 23% of businesses. However, 43% of large groups plan to invest in CSR, compared to only 9% of SMEs, which prioritize targeted actions such as marketing eco-friendly products.

For Pascal Andries, CEO of Orisha Construction "The trade sector is entering a logic of economic survival. While customer experience and digitalization are shared priorities, SMEs in the sector are proceeding with extreme caution, constrained by much greater pressure on margins than large groups."

In a challenging economic climate, the Orisha 2025 Barometer highlights the profound transformation of the construction materials trade in France. Faced with rising costs, increased local competition, and ever more demanding customers, companies are shifting their investments towards levers that create immediate value. Customer experience, supported by digitalization and logistics, is becoming the primary driver of competitiveness for French building materials suppliers.

Methodology :
CAWI Study – 125 trading decision-makers – fieldwork November 2025

Illustrative image of the article via Depositphotos.com.